Around 9:30 a.m. Mayor Ray Nagin issues a mandatory evacuation. FRONTLINE reports from Iraq on the miscalculations and mistakes behind the brutal rise of ISIS. Not Just the Levees Broke: My Story During and After Hurricane Katrina. In all, more than 1,500 died either duringthe storm or inthe famouslybungled aftermath which saw local, state, and federal officials uncoordinated and overwhelmed. But prosecutors have struggled to hold officers accountable. And he said: 'No, you don't have to leave. So I finally just walked up to Danny and said, Mr. To get food out. "A close eye will be kept this system could strengthen ". In downtown New Orleans, some streets were merely wet rather than swamped. She gripped my arm at the store, and she told me, the way you shared with everybody so openly, you helped me to heal. Visit us at HISTORY.com for more info. Sept. 27, 2005, 12:58 PM PDT / Source: The Associated Press. Michael Brown, FEMA director: He estimates 5,000 to 10,000 people are still in the city, with many of them still waiting to be rescued. It regained strength as its path turned northwest. New Orleans's flood-protection system was improved by increasing in the heights of earthen berms and upgrading floodwalls and floodgates. When we didn't get any assistance from the state or from FEMA in the time period that we thought was appropriate, I got someone in an automobile and said, 'Go to Baton Rouge, go find out. Lt. Dave Benelli, commander of the sex crimes unit with the New Orleans Police Department, denies that. I immediately hung up the phone, called my city attorney because they had always advised that you can't do a mandatory evacuation. Flooding grows as water surges over levee breaks from Lake Ponchartrain; the 9th Ward is almost entirely submerged. Sept. 15, 2005, 7:50 AM PDT. In what looked like a scene from a Third World country, some people threw their arms heavenward and others nearly fainted with joy as the trucks and hundreds of soldiers arrived in the punishing midday heat. More than four days after the storm hit, the caravan of at least three-dozen camouflage-green troop vehicles and supply trucks arrived along with dozens of air-conditioned buses to take refugees out of the city. "Coastal residents jammed freeways and gas stations as they rushed to get out A direct hit could wind up submerging New Orleans in several feet of water At least 100,000 people in the city lack transportation to get out Louisiana and Mississippi make all lanes northbound on interstate highways". "Louis Armstrong International Airport served as a massive clearing house for some of the storm's sickest victims Saturday. About 16,000 people . Victims of Hurricane Katrina fight through the crowd as they line up for buses to evacuate the Superdome and New Orleans, Sept. 1, 2005. "I'm telling you the number of reported rapes we had.". Patrice Taddonio. Gettridge,a fifth generation New Orleanian, would go on to die from a heart attack in 2014 at the age of 91 at the home he had successfully rebuilt. And the guard unitspent most of the next 24 hours saving itself. Around this time 17 years ago, Hurricane Katrina bore down on New Orleans, and permanently changed life for thousands of people across the country. There is a documentary about . After being damaged by. authenticate users, apply security measures, and prevent spam and abuse, and, display personalised ads and content based on interest profiles, measure the effectiveness of personalised ads and content, and, develop and improve our products and services. ", Gov. Left to right: Mayor Ray Nagin, President Bush, Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff, FEMA Director Michael Brown, Gov. But there were also profane jeers from many in the crowd of nearly 20,000 outside the Convention Center, which a day earlier seemed on the verge of a riot, with desperate people seething with anger over the lack of anything to eat or drink. Katrina makes landfall near Grand Isle, Louisiana as a Category 3 storm with winds near 127 mph. The Army Corps of Engineers renews work to fix the breach in the 17th St. Canal. With all due respect, Mr. President, if you and the governor don't get on the same page, this event is going to continue to spiral down, and it's going to be a black eye on everybody -- federal, state and local.' A scene from 2006s 'When the Levees Broke: A Requiem in Four Acts' (Photo: Everett Collection) This week marks a . National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration warning: I am still going out into the streets every day to talk to people about their experiencesI call it getting phyllisophical. Gov. Listen 7:57. Expressed my concerns, my frustration He needed to really get us resources to save people. Panels blew off and the roof was severely damaged, but it was the only shelter . Kathleen Blanco: Gov. Hurricane Katrina, tropical cyclone that struck the southeastern United States in late August 2005. New Orleans resident climbing through roof of house. "[Michael] Brown I did not see the first couple of days. Explore FRONTLINEs collected and ongoing reporting on Russia's war on Ukraine. Having largely emptied the cavernous Superdome, which had become a squalid pit of misery and violence, officials turned their attention to the Convention Center, where people waited to be evacuated as corpses rotted in the streets. Mayor, what do you need?' President Bush declares Louisiana and Mississippi major disaster areas. The two of us are going to leave. Trachelle Addison cuddles her 2-week-old son, Jirra-e, in the stands of the Superdome, where some 25,000 refugees took shelter after Hurricane Katrina devastated New Orleans. But while the Superdome has been reclaimed, those stories of trauma remain, and some roil pretty close to . Anastasia is a petite, 25-year-old hairdresser who asked that her last name be omitted. Kathleen Blanco: And it was a very good meeting, I thought. With a death toll of more than 1,800, Katrina was the third-deadliest hurricane in US history after Galveston in 1900 (which killed 8,000 to . Interstate 10 is shut down with damage to 40 percent of its Twin Span Bridge over Lake Ponchartrain. Phyllis Montana-LeBlancthe breakout star of Spike Lees When the Levees Broke documentary and author of Not Just the Levees Broke: My Story During and After Katrina (and a consultant on David Simons new post-Katrina HBO drama)writes below about why viewers should still care about New Orleans four years later, and why Trouble the Water just may be the wakeup call we need. The Coast Guard mobilizes to respond after the storm hits. Stranded victims of Hurricane Katrina rest inside the Superdome September 2, 2005 in New Orleans. During Hurricane Katrina, around 20,000 people took refuge in the Superdome. 49 But it was the subsequent flooding of New Orleans that imposed catastrophic public health conditions on the people of southern . In New Orleans last year, there was a rape every other day on average. They didn't have water. But a growing body of evidence suggests there were more storm-related sexual assaults than previously known. "There was a period of days when we weren't sure who was directing the federal response and were all the actions being taken. About 2,000 medical evacuees remain at Louis Armstrong Airport, which has become a staging area for responders and injured refugees. Every little thing helps. Around this time 17 years ago, Hurricane Katrina bore down on New . During Hurricane Katrina, then known as the Louisiana Superdome, the arena was used as . An Unfiltered View: Producers of Police on Trial on What the Documentary Reveals 2 Years After the Murder of George Floyd, From the Archives: How the World's Deadliest Ebola Outbreak Unfolded, Russias Invasion of Ukraine, One Year Later, War Crimes Watch Ukraine: More Than 650 Documented Events, From the Archives: How the U.N. & World Failed Darfur Amid "the 21st Century's First Genocide". HBO. Before Hurricane Katrina hit, New Orleans residents gathered to ride out the storm in what seemed like a pretty safe place, the Superdome, the city's football stadium . Mayor Mitch Landrieu last week hailedNew Orleans as Americas comeback city,citing efforts to reduce crime, decrease homelessness and improve educational outcomes for area students. On August 28, 2005, at 6 am, New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin announced that the Superdome would be used as a public shelter. I've got to know. The account of her rape was verified by a trained forensic nurse at Earl K. Long Hospital in Baton Rouge, where Lewis sought treatment. "At that stage, we had mission-assigned the Department of Defense to start giving us everything they could in terms of air-lift capability. And then they'd gone around the room, and everybody's talking to the president and giving their opinions. But for five days in the midst of the storm, about 20,000 of these . By the evening of August 25, when it made . Michael Brown, FEMA director: After Katrina, the spectacle of a Black refugee population in the Superdome, along with the short-lived plan from Mayor Nagin's committee to wipe out some Black neighborhoods, revived these . Thousands of displaced residents take cover from Hurricane Katrina at the Superdome in New . Residents are bringing their belongings and lining up to get into the Superdome which has been opened as a hurricane shelter in advance of hurricane Katrina. His death came nearly two years to the day after his wifes passing. Ms. Blanco, she left and walked out. [Congressman] Bobby Jindal is there, the senators Landrieu and [David] Vitter, and Congressman [William] Jefferson. Its just rawits a look at the poorest people of the Ninth Ward, and those who couldnt afford to leave, and if you have a heart in your body, you will feel this film 100 percent. Walter Maestri, Jefferson Parish emergency manager: Richard Falkenrath, Homeland Security Adviser (2001-2004): In Fight Against ISIS, a Lose-Lose Scenario Poses Challenge for West. The film a raw and gripping investigation of the Katrina response, its tragic consequences and its political ramifications includes candid interviews with key Katrina decision-makers, including the first televised interview with former FEMA Director Michael Brown since his resignation two weeks after Katrina hit. In the six weeks since the Web site has been up, with almost no publicity, it has received 42 reports of sexual assaults. The spot urges victims to report their assault by calling 1-800-656-HOPE. Female victims, now displaced from New Orleans, are slowly coming forward with a different story than the official one. [2] Approximately 10,000 residents, along with about 150 National Guardsmen, sheltered in the Superdome anticipating Katrina's landfall. You'll receive access to exclusive information and early alerts about our documentaries and investigations. Producer Martin Smith: So we're just eating sandwiches and making nice while people are stranded on rooftops? When Hurricane Katrina forced New Orleans poet Shelton Alexander to evacuate his home, he took his truck and video camera to the Superdome. [Secretary of Homeland Security Michael] Chertoff is there. The Department of Defense's "Joint Task Force Katrina" -- 4,600 active-duty military headed by Army Lt. Gen. Russel Honor -- sets up at Camp Shelby, Miss. Reports stream in from people needing rescue. Looting breaks out in parts of the city. I aint about to leave, Gettridge said. They lost 15 high-water trucks with mobile communications packages. But one man then-82-year-old Herbert Gettridge was determined to rebuild the house he had built more than 50 years earlier in the Lower Ninth Ward, with or without government support. Hurricane Katrina made landfall off the coast of Louisiana on August 29, 2005. Mayor, we had a good meeting. Some electrical substations serving downtown New Orleans are repaired, but Entergy, the local energy utitlity, must first ensure that buildings can receive the electricity safely before the power is restored. And I think thats whats going to help us rebuild the mosttalking about what happened and how we can move onand why documentaries like Trouble the Water are still so relevant. Several parishes and the city of New Orleans announce emergency responders will stop venturing out once the wind exceeds 45 mph. It has been nearly six years since Hurricane Katrina ripped through the Gulf of Mexico cutting a swathe of devastation and shock through the psyche of the American people. At the peak of the Katrina recovery effort, 51,039 National Guard soldiers from all 50 states, Washington, D.C., and three territories worked in Louisiana and Mississippi, making Katrina by far . At daybreak, rescuers set out on boats to help others still stranded. Now, other than media reports, I don't know what's happening at the other end. Other people call me the Dr. Phil of the streets.. After her rape, Lewis says, there were no clinics open, so she washed herself with bleach. He escaped the ch. No, they weren't. "I'm not gonna go on television and publicly say that I think that the mayor and the governor are not doing their job, and that they don't have the sense of urgency. Trapped on Airline Drive in a traffic jam in his gas-depleted pickup truck, he didn't think he would reach his destination of Baton Rouge. It is 250 miles south-southeast of the mouth of the Mississippi River. "With the evacuee situation stabilizing somewhat, and increasing numbers of armed soldiers and police on the streets, officials said Saturday they would start aggressively dealing with the bands of armed looters who pushed the city to the brink of complete breakdown. "What you had was a situation where you've got a tremendous number of vulnerable people, and then some predatory people who had all of the reasons to take their anger out on someone else," Benitez says. And if you dont trust the system to deliver the money to the right places, call a school yourself and ask them what they need. His goal: To make it possible for his wife of 65 years, Lydia who had gone to live with one of their nine children in Wisconsin after Katrina to return home. On June 4, 2006, Pamela Mahogany was interviewed for her personal experience involving the events following Hurricane Katrina. There was all kinds of crime taking place on a much higher level than usual. She says as she watched New Orleans descend into chaos after Katrina, she knew what would happen. And based upon that ["Hurricane Pam" planning exercise], I knew they needed to evacuate. The groups went in shifts, sneaking down over to the. More than 1 million more in the Gulf region were displaced. The Times-Picayune reports the Convention Center evacuees are still being loaded onto buses and evacuated and search-and-rescue operations continue. Photo. She is at work on her next memoir, No More Wire Hangers, about domestic abuse in teenage relationships. But there were also profane jeers from many in the crowd of nearly 20,000 outside the Convention Center, which a day earlier seemed on the verge of a riot, with desperate people seething with anger over the lack of anything to eat or drink. Kathleen Blanco: Do You Have News to Share? Exclusive: A Former MPD Lieutenant Reported Another Cop. "I was told that they could mobilize immediately 2,500 National Guards members. "I admit that rapes are underreported," Benelli says. FEMA organizes 475 buses to be sent in to transport many of the estimated 23,000 people from the Superdome to the Houston Astrodome. Inside the four triage tents, medical personnel tended to people who had gone for days without their medication. ". The price tag has not yet been determined. Hurricane Katrina Superdome. That she could turn this 15 minutes of footage into an Oscar-nominated documentaryIm amazed by it. web site copyright 1995-2014 Flew into the city. We have so much intelligence down here in New Orleans, and yet, even four years after the hurricane, we cant rely on the school system. Then, the airman hesitated a minute, and asked Landreneau to hold. But we need something really big, like a hospital, that shows where the $25 billion in recovery money is going. The hurricane and its aftermath claimed more than 1,800 lives, and it ranked as the costliest natural disaster in U.S. history. "We did meet with [Mayor Nagin] Tuesday morning. I wasnt poor before Katrina, and Im certainly not poor afterward, but Trouble the Water pisses me off all over again, in a good way. 7:577-Minute Listen. In the decade since Katrina, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) which came under harsh criticism for its response to the storm says it has improved its preparedness for future natural disasters. hurricane katrina ripped through the Gulf Coast, claiming 1,800 lives. After the genocide in Rwanda and atrocities in Srebrenica, Bosnia, in the 1990s, the world vowed never again. Then came the conflict in Darfur, Sudan, which began 20 years ago. HBO. And he basically asked me, 'Mr. The following year, during an interview with Tom Brokaw at Columbia Journalism School, Williams said, "We watched, all of us watched . will never be the same. Ten years ago this Saturday, Hurricane Katrina made landfall on the Gulf Coast. She was featured in Spike Lee's documentary When the Levees Broke and is author of Not Just the Levees Broke: My Story During and After Hurricane Katrina. By the end of the day, it is upgraded to Tropical Storm Katrina, with 50 mph maximum sustained winds. Exacerbated by the recent BP oil spill in the region, the storm and its aftermath remains an open wound for local residents and others affected . Anastasia says thugs were still wandering the streets of her neighborhood more than a week after the flood. Around this time 17 years ago, Hurricane Katrina bore down on New Orleans, and . Thousands of troops poured into the city September. Experts say it was the perfect environment to commit a crime, and the worst environment to report a crime. background photo copyright 2005 corbis FEMA National Situation Update: ", President Bush arrives in Louisiana. All I can tell you is that in the city of New Orleans we had maybe 250 guardsmen that we could account for. Civil order had completely broken down. It was called "Hurricane Pam" and the exercise was conducted with state and local emergency managers. FEMA Situation Update: He came right back and he said, I dont know why, but theres probably a foot of water on Claiborne Street, Landreneau said. - Severe flooding damage to cities along the Gulf Coast, from New Orleans to . The Times-Picayune reports that Jefferson Parish residents are allowed to return to the area to inspect the damage to their homes.The breach in the 17th Street Canal is finally repaired, and engineers continue to work on other levee breaks. She contacted the New Orleans police in October and filed a report that she was beaten with a bat and raped on Sept. 6th in broad daylight next to a flooded McDonald's at Gentilly Boulevard and Elysian Fields, near her father's house. Why haven't the bosses decided to move the people out?' We need you to take over logistics, distribution of commodities, etc. The Convention Center becomes a destination for walk-in refugees seeking evacuation. I gave people clues on how to pack. Floodwaters keep rising. The Times-Picayune reports that an estimated 112,000 people do not own cars. And I wanted to cut to the chase because I knew what the real issue was. Issues of race, class, government response and responsibility, and political rivalries interweave with personal stories of challenges faced and decisions made. Why would we think there was less rape typical of any given week in the city? For my part, I am still going out into the streets every day to talk to people about their experiencesI call it getting phyllisophical. Other people call me the Dr. Phil of the streets. She made a report to a local sheriff's office; it has not yet passed the report on to the New Orleans police. Phyllis Montana-Leblanc is a Hurricane Katrina survivor. I think we both should have asked sooner.". August 28, 2005. Nobody cared.". On Monday, Aug. 29, 2005, Hurricane Katrina made its historic landfall on the Gulf Coast, hitting a number of cities along the Louisiana-Mississippi border, with the eye . In Louisiana, New Orleans is of particular concern because much of that city lies below sea level. The Army Corps of Engineers attempts to plug breaches in the 17th Street Canal and Industrial Canal levees. They didn't have ammunition. Some 11,000 National Guardsmen are now on duty in Louisiana and increased security begins to have an effect on lawlessness in New Orleans, although some violence continues. And we said, "Plan your route carefully. PBS is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization. We, Yahoo, are part of the Yahoo family of brands. Katrina becomes a Category 1 hurricane with 75 mph maximum sustained winds. These three documentaries and nearly 190 more are all streaming online at pbs.org/frontline. FEMA National Situation Update: Refuge of last resort: Five days inside the Superdome for Hurricane Katrina. I said, 'We need to do this.' August 29, 2005. The storm that would later become Hurricane Katrina surfaced on August 23, 2005, as a tropical depression over the Bahamas, approximately 350 miles (560 km) east of Miami. Directed by New Orleans native Edward Buckles Jr., who was a teenager when Katrina struck, the documentary, which premieres Thursday on HBO, reminds us of the storm's real-life ramifications. Buckles, who wrote and directed the documentary . My old high school, Joseph S. Clark, shut down, and we dont even have parks yet for kids to hang out inthats what we did in the 70s, at leastIm still trying to petition for these things, to organize our community, and these fool ass people have not yet gotten down here to rebuild. Ray Nagin, mayor of New Orleans: So I can assume what the criminals were thinking, and that's exactly what happened.". FEMA National Situation Update: Listen 7:57. Power outages will last for weeks water shortages will make human suffering incredible by modern standards.". HBO. 5 Must-See Documentaries About Hurricane Katrina. Conditions are deteriorating with bathrooms overflowing, no power for air conditioning and little food and water. You have responded to my calls." She requests President Bush to declare a state of emergency in Louisiana. "Katrina will regenerate on Friday over Gulf of Mexico, head west-northwest then turn northward. Looting becomes more widespread; hotels begin turning out guests. "Media reports attribute Katrina with four fatalities [in Florida], more than a million customers were without electricity". A shaft of light falls throught an opening in the fully evacuated Superdome on Sept. 5, 2005 in New Orleans, La. And he passes, literally, hundreds of school buses lined up to come and get these folks. ", At that time, I thought we had done a pretty good job because we had gotten about 80 percent of the people out. On Sept. 15, 2005, in an address to the nation, President Bush declares, "It is now clear that a challenge on this scale requires greater federal authority and a broader role for the armed forces -- the institution of our government most capable of massive logistical operations on a moment's notice.". Web Site Copyright 1995-2023 WGBH Educational Foundation. Here in New Orleans East, we desperately need a hospital. Their back-up generators flooded. Neville says she was sexually assaulted early the morning of Aug. 31st, while she was sleeping on the roof of Drew Elementary School in the Bywater Neighborhood, where she and others had taken refuge. Another group, Witness Justice, a Maryland-based non-profit that assists victims of violent crimes, claims to have received 156 reports of post-Katrina violent crimes; about a third of those involved sexual assaults. My sense now is there are victims out there whose stories haven't been heard.". to support FEMA disaster relief efforts, but it will be two days before the troops arrive in the city. And that this could potentially be the big one that we had planned for in Hurricane Pam.". Hurricane Katrina first made landfall on Aug. 25, 2005, in Florida, weakening to a tropical storm as it briefly passed over land. There are still areas that look like Katrina hit yesterday. Where is all the things that we need to get out of here?"' Blanco tours the area Tuesday evening and announces that the Superdome should be evacuated. The top-notch special effects are alarmingly realistic and frightening, particularly when the 17th St. Canal levee breaches and when Katrina rips the roof from the Superdome, where in the days . It took me too long and I worked too hard to build what I had here.. Police Chief Eddie Compass admitted even his own officers had taken food and water from stores. TV-PG. Katrina Cop in the Superdome. New Orleans, Louisiana after Hurricane Katrina, as seen in the new documentary Katrina Babies . Exploring the experiences of a black member of the New Orleans Police Department and assorted other New Orleans residents during their stay in the Louisiana Superdome during and after Hurricane Katrina struck New Orleans in 2005. The majority of industrial buildings will become non functional. Mahogany describes her actions before deciding to evacuate her home, her trip to the New Orleans Saints' Superdome, her horrific time at the Superdome, and finally her decision to leave New Orleans. Required fields are marked *. Evacuating hospitals is a top priority: Patients and staff are stranded and supplies and power are dwindling. The Louisiana Superdome, once a mighty testament to architecture and ingenuity, became the biggest storm shelter in New Orleans the day before Katrina's arrival Monday. "[On Air Force One] we gave the president a briefing on everything that had gone on. I've never seen a hurricane like this in my 33-year career. Your email address will not be published. New Orleans, Louisiana after Hurricane Katrina, as seen in the new documentary Katrina Babies. And New Orleans itself has worked to rebuild. And he had flown in a helicopter. First categorized as a tropical storm, Katrina hit New Orleans, flattening buildings, breaking levees, and flooding the city with terrifying 125 mph winds. Officers were walking off the job by the dozens. And I said [to the president], "Here's my piece of paper. The Mercedes-Benz Superdome is a landmark in the city of New Orleans. , "Law and order all but broke down in New Orleans over the past few days. Ultimately, more than 300 soldiers would be trapped inside their own headquarters. ' Gettridge told FRONTLINE. He also announces that the Superdome will be "a shelter of last resort for evacuees with special needs." The National Guards didn't want to hear it.". If you would like to customise your choices, click 'Manage privacy settings'. FRONTLINEs documentary The Old Man and the Storm followed Gettridge for 18 months as he worked to rebuild his home, which took on 10 feet of water when the levees breached. A Tropical Depression with 35 mph maximum sustained winds is located 250 miles east-southeast of southeast Florida.